Mortified at jeopardizing Tony’s opportunity to complete his certification, Carm shook her head. She’d been into extreme sports since she was a teen and had been scuba diving since college. To let an embarrassing panic attack put an end to this dive went against everything in her. She shook her head with a vehement, no.
More determined than ever to salvage this wreck of a dive, Carm refused to let their final dive end this way. With Tony’s help over the next few moments, Carm’s breathing became more rhythmic and she regained her equilibrium.
Before she could respond to Tony, their guide swam up to them, using the motion of his dive light to ask if everything was okay. Tony looked to Carm for the answer. She took a deep breath. No more coughing, and her panic was gone. Finally remembering her training, Carm moved her light beam in a circle, the signal for okay. After the guide confirmed that Tony was in agreement, he cautioned them to stay closer, and Tony signaled for her to start when ready.
Almost out of this nightmare, she smiled and nodded, putting on a brave face and squeezing Tony’s hand for emphasis.
The guide led the group out of the outcropping, and Carm forced herself to start taking in her surroundings again. The incident behind her, she recaptured the joy of watching a school of fish swim into the beam of her dive light. Some displayed neon-like coloring that hadn’t shown up in her daytime dives.
Carm waved her arms through the water the way she’d seen a diver do in one of the videos she watched, and the bioluminescence picked up the coral and plankton nearby. Her excitement grew as she studied the creatures within the small beam of her light. Tony doubled the viewing area with his light, and they watched as if in the middle of an enormous aquarium. During the day, the field of vision was so much wider that you sometimes missed the small vignettes playing out right under your nose. But at night, you were forced to slow down and take everything in on a micro level. She likened it to her hiking treks and seeing the vast range of the mountains sprawled out before her then looking down to find a tiny alpine flower peeking out from a snow-encrusted crevice in late spring.
They continued to swim above the reef, noticing the differences and making new discoveries, until their instructor got their attention and signaled that it was time to head back up. She hated to leave! Carm vowed to return again the first chance she could get away from the resort. Embarrassed about panicking in front of Tony, Carm was grateful he’d been there to help her work through her panic. How had Tony known exactly how to alleviate her panic and help her salvage what was left of the dive? Had he learned that during his rescue diving session the other day? Wherever he’d learned it, she was grateful he had.
About fifteen feet from the surface, they did their three-minute safety check to avoid decompression sickness. Tony continued to hold her hand, and they investigated the creatures swimming closer to the surface while waiting until it was safe to surface. Once again, her thoughts returned to how she’d spoiled the dive for Tony.
When they finally broke the surface, she removed the regulator and turned to Tony. “I’m so sorry! I don’t know what happened down there.” She wasn’t ready to tell him about the childhood trauma that had only increased her panic level.
He stroked the side of her face. “What are you talking about? That was an incredible dive.”
“Yes, most of it was. I mean what happened near the arch. I hope I didn’t ruin the dive for you.”
He cocked his head and gave her an incredulous look. “Ruined? Not a chance! We just experienced something neither of us ever has before in our lives. As for that rocky start, hell, you gave me a chance to practice some of the amazing rescue skills I just learned on Wednesday.” He waggled his eyebrows, making her smile and casting most of her concerns aside. So that was where he’d learned what to do.
“You’re going to be an excellent rescue diver. I know you helped me to continue the dive. I’ll never forget how you came to my rescue.” She leaned in and gave him a kiss, suddenly needing to be closer to him.
Just then, the dive guide surfaced with the others in the group. He removed his regulator. “Everyone okay?”
Carm broke off the kiss and smiled at the guide like a teenager caught kissing under the bleachers. “Better than okay. That was incredible,” Carm said. “Thanks for bringing us back out here tonight.”
“This is one of my favorite places to dive off Provo, day or night, so I love sharing it.” He did a quick head count. “Ready to head back to the boat?” he asked the group. Everyone nodded, and the instructor led the way back to the boat.
Tony took her hand as they kicked their fins on the swim back to the boat. The electricity sparking between her and Tony had only grown more potent with this experience. Tonight had been a turning point for her at least, and she hoped it had been for Tony as well. Would he spend the night with her tonight on
